


just the same, but brand new

by happymedium



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-17
Updated: 2016-12-17
Packaged: 2018-09-09 08:29:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8883892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/happymedium/pseuds/happymedium
Summary: ‘You gonna miss me, Danvers?’Alex folds her arms with a scoff. Lucy’s only going for 4 weeks, and that’s fine. Because she does not like Lucy Lane.





	

*

  


Alex Danvers does not like Lucy Lane.  
  
Sure, she’s smart, strong.  
  
She’s funny in a dorky kind of way, and okay, she’s definitely drop dead gorgeous.  
  
But anyone could tell you that.  
  
She doesn’t like how one corner of her mouth lifts first when she smiles, or how proud Lucy looks whenever she tells a joke, no matter how terrible.  
  
Alex definitely doesn’t like how her heart beats faster whenever Lucy touches her shoulder, or smiles at her, or looks at her.  
  
But when Vasquez says she’s talking papers to Major Lane, why take her away from all of her important work when Alex can just take them herself?  
  
That’s how she finds Lucy in her office— not all dressed in the standard all-black combat gear like she normally is Monday morning— but in an unfamiliar business suit and heels.  
  
‘What’s all of this?’ Alex asks, gesturing to the suitcase and open briefcase on her desk.  
  
‘Summit in Washington,’ she says, as if that explains everything, then closes the briefcase with a grin.  
   
‘And J’onn is sending _you_?’  
  
‘Well, I guess I have better people skills than you do,’ Lucy smirks wickedly, ‘You gonna miss me, Danvers?’  
  
Alex folds her arms with a scoff.  
  
Lucy’s only going for 4 weeks, and that’s fine.  
  
Because she does not _like_ Lucy Lane.  
  
  


*

 

Okay.

Maybe she likes Lucy, a little bit.

They see each other pretty much every day at work, and even out of the office when Lucy started coming the game night

(…Which really wasn’t as awkward as she’d imagined.)

It’d be dumb not to at least try and be friends with your boss.

And hey, working with Lucy has it’s perks.

She likes how there’s always a coffee waiting on her desk if Lucy gets to the building first, and the fact she never has to reshuffle the files that are dropped on her desk each morning, which makes Alex’s life a hell of a lot easier.

Alex got along before Lucy even worked at the DEO though, she can handle a month of reshuffling papers. She’s capable.

Except it’s not even a day later and there’s a… file on Prisoner 3441 that she can’t find. So who better to ask than the woman who is 2794 miles away.

The phone rings twice but before Alex can decide that she is being completely ridiculous and hang up, Lucy answers with a curt Lucy Lane.

‘Hey it’s just me,’

‘Alex?’

‘What, you don’t have my number saved?’

(It’s meant to come across as a joke, except: Why _doesn’t_ Lucy have her number stored?)

‘I’m uh, looking for a file on Prisoner 3441, and you organised my desk last so…’

Organising was maybe too strong of a word.

She had picked up her paper coffee cup and dropped it in the Recycling. Still.

‘I’m sorry, I wouldn’t— have you asked J’onn?’

Alex _could_ have asked J’onn. But as much as she likes J’onn, he’s not the one she wants to— speak to…, like a professional adult.

That, and that she didn’t really want to have the conversation on _why_ she’s looking for a file on a prisoner that doesn’t actually exist.

‘You know what, I’ve just got it. Panic over,’ Alex fibs, shuffling the papers on her desk to add affect, ‘So, how was the flight?’

Lucy sighs and Alex can actually hear the frown through the phone,

‘It was delayed by about 2 hours, and a kid kicked my chair the whole flight. I mean, what was he even doing in business class anyway? Why did I have to do to this thing again?’

‘I’m pretty sure your exact words were that you “have better people skills” than I do, so…’ Alex leans back in her chair, her free hand scratches the back of her neck, grinning.

Lucy hums,

‘Maybe I was wrong. Next time I’ll bring you with me and we can suffer together. It’d beat being in this hotel room alone with nothing to do,’

Alex pretty much chokes on air.

‘Okay, that came out wrong,’ she hears Lucy snicker, and Alex can just about muster an awkward laugh before making a lame excuse to end the call,

(“A weird space slug has escaped containment in the lab and I gotta go… contain it, okay bye”)

By the time she’s hung up, Alex’s face is redder than a stop light.

And okay, maybe she likes Lucy a little more than she lets on.

 

*

It’s 10am and she’s been in the lab for nearly 4 hours already, although not for wanting to.

She’d woken up in the middle of the night after a particularly… strange dream involving… someone, and couldn’t for the life of her get back to sleep.

Her phone pips and she’s half expecting it to be Kara, following up their conversation only half an hour earlier about her Danish Pastry that kinda looked like Winn.

So she’s pleasantly surprised when she see’s Lucy’s name flash across her screen.

  
_[10:02] Lucy:_  
_I need you to fake a national crisis that’ll get me out of this conference call_  
  
Alex snorts, and taps back,  
  
_[10:02]  Alex:_  
_That bad, huh?_  
  
The reply isn’t as snappy as Alex would like, it’s about 9 minutes later when her phone blips again.  
  
_[10:10] Lucy:_  
_Sorry I think I might have dozed off for a second there._  
  
_[10:11] Alex:_  
_You sure you should be texting? Aren’t you supposed to be listening?_  
  
_[10:11] Lucy:_  
_I can multi-task… This this guy has NO idea what he’s talking about btw. He used the word guesstimate, Alex. Guesstimate._  
  
_[10:11] Alex:_  
_Jesus_  
  
The phone buzzes again and she opens the message to a picture of Lucy with an exaggerated pout and two fingers pointing to her head.  
  
Alex grins,  
  
_[10:11] Alex:_  
_Stop distracting me Lane… some of us have work to do you know X_  
  
  
  
The message is already sent by the time she realises what she’s done.  
  
A kiss. Crap.  
  
Alex doesn’t add kisses.  
  
Not to Kara, not to her Mom.  
  
Maybe once to her class TA in college with the short hair who she definitely didn’t sleep with…  
  
Her moment of panic is cut short by her phone buzzing, and—  
  
  
_[10:13]  Lucy:_  
_My bad ;-) have fun! X_  
  
  
Maybe the kiss wasn’t such a mistake after all.  
  
  
  


*

 

 

 

_[18:46]  Alex:_  
_I can't believe you're missing game night. Kara sucks at jenga FYI._

_[18:47]  Lucy:_  
_Really? You'd think Supergirl would be good at that kinda thing. X_

_[18:49]  Alex:_  
_I mean, we should have known from that time she accidentally banged her elbow and took down the door frame. What are you doing? X_

_[18:49]  Lucy:_  
_You're right. And right now I am debating whether or not to watch Americas Got Talent or go down to the bar. X_

_[18:50]  Alex:_  
_Are you kidding?_

_[18:51] Lucy:_  
_Guilty pleasure?_

_[18:52] Alex:_  
_Go to the bar, Lane._

 

…

_[19:11]  Lucy:_  
_This whole sitting alone at the bar isn’t as fun as it sounds. X_

_[19:12]  Alex:_  
_What, there’s no alcohol? x_

_[19:12]  Lucy:_  
_Har har. It would be better if I had company…_

_[19:13]  Alex:_  
_No eligible bachelors on your radar?_

_[19:14] Lucy:_  
_Hmmm, none that are my type…_

_[19:15]  Alex:_  
_And what would your type be?_

_[19:19]  Lucy:_  
_That would be telling._

_[19:20] Lucy:_  
_;-) X_

 

*

 

 

‘Come on Alex,’

When all she can offer is a blank look, Kara rolls her eyes and hands her phone back,

‘Do you think Lucy brings everyone in the lab a coffee each morning?’

‘It’s not every morning…’ Alex mumbles.

Kara nudges her thigh with her foot, just hard enough to make Alex look up and fixes her with a look that is completely Supergirl and—

Okay, maybe it was a bad idea to show Kara the string of texts she and Lucy had exchanged.

‘Fine. Maybe she does, but we work together. She’s my boss. I shouldn’t have let it get this far in the first place,’

Kara shrugs and reaches for her soda,

‘That’s a dumb excuse. Do you want to know what I think?’

Again, with Alex’s lack of response Kara presses on,

‘You need to stop thinking 10 steps ahead. This is your love life, not a covert operation,’

‘I think I’d rather take on the whole of Fort Roz than my love life,’ Alex confesses, burying her head in her hands, right as a pillow is lobbed at her head. Kara sits up straight,

‘Plus! You kinda went on a date with Maxwell Lord so,’

‘Okay that was _definitely_ not a date—‘

‘—Why not go out with someone you actually like?’

That shuts her up.

Ignoring the smug look on Kara’s face she reaches for the last slice of pizza and tries to concentrate on the film.  
   
Tries being the operative word.

 

 

*

 

Okay.

So what if she likes Lucy Lanes.

It’s just a crush.

Crushes are dumb, and they’re even worse when the other person doesn’t like you back. Which is the only line of thinking Alex can get her head around. Because the thought of Lucy Lane liking her...

Alex can get over it, will get over it.

She just wishes she knew how to deal with it.

 

 

*

It’s been a long day.

Turns out the DEO actually does have a type of space-slug contained, because she almost destroyed 6 months of research whilst trying to contain another type of space insect that just wouldn’t stop growing.

When she gets home, there are three messages from Lucy on her phone.

The messages stay there for three days.

It’s just a crush, and Lucy doesn’t like her- can't like her. If she ignores it, it will go away.

(She hopes.)

  
  


*

 

A week later, and Alex is walking through the back offices at the DEO.

She almost doesn’t see Lucy sitting at her desk, pen in hand, sifting through a pile of documents.

If it wasn’t for the fact her almost-permanently-closed door is slightly ajar, Alex would have breezed right past.

She knocks briefly, and only steps inside when Lucy looks up and smiles at her pleasantly,

‘Back already, huh?’

Lucy hums and offers nothing but a small shrug in response, leaning back in her chair, the pen she’s holding see-saws between her fingers.

It’s only been three and a half weeks and okay, it’s not as though Alex forgot how beautiful Lucy Lane is, but seeing her again, it just…

( _Just a crush, it’s just a crush._ )

‘There wasn’t a reason to stay,’ she says, her stare cutting,

Alex smiles lopsidedly, ‘Well, I’m glad to see you,’

At that, Lucy’s eyebrow hikes up in surprise, ‘Are you?’

‘Of course,’ Alex frowns, and Lucy looks unconvinced,

‘I just—,’ Lucy begins to say, before stopping herself.

It’s amazing, Alex thinks, how quickly she can go from just being Lucy to Major Lane in an instant,

‘Actually, it’s nothing. If you don’t mind, I have a mountain of paperwork to do and I do want to go home sometime tonight, so.’ Lucy points her pen to the door briefly.

Hesitant, Alex moves closer to her desk, ready to ask what’s wrong. Only before she can speak she’s stopped by Lucy who just snaps, ‘Can you just go? And close the door on your way out.’

Well, that wasn’t what she expected.

Alex straightens her stance, hands crossed behind her back, and clears her throat as calmly as she can, fighting the rush of embarrassment and urge to snipe back with great difficulty.

Instead she settles on a clipped ‘Yes Ma’am,’ and marches out of the office.

Alex closes the door behind her with force, and ignores the turning heads of other Agents as she storms down the corridor.

 

 

*

Okay, so she definitely regrets calling Kara when she’s back at her apartment.

The first thing her sister does— after Alex explained what had happened— is call her an idiot.

(Maybe she needs more friends…)

‘Of course she’s mad!’ Kara exclaims, and Alex can just picture the look on her face, flailing arms and all.

‘You guy’s have been flirting back and forth for weeks now then suddenly radio silence, and now you’re wanting to pick up and pretend it never happened? You jerked her around, Alex.’

Well.

When she puts it like that,

‘Flirting is nothing! You flirt all of the time with the barista at Noonan's,’

(She can hear Kara making some indignant guttural noises in the background in protest)

’And even if it was any more than flirting, I’m being practical. Someone was bound to get hurt,’

‘Too late for that, don’t you think,’ Kara mumbles.

Alex slumps back in her chair; maybe her totally inappropriate, one-sided crush wasn’t so one-sided after all.

Then,

‘Listen I’ve gotta go. There’s a sink hole downtown calling my name and I know I’m Supergirl, but even I can only handle one disaster at a time. Love you, ’

Alex rolls her eyes and smiles despite herself,

The call ends at the thunderous sound of Kara taking off, Alex let’s her cell phone drop to the carpet and buries her head in her hands.

‘Love you too,’

*

 

It’s 7:30am and she’s stood outside of Lucy’s office.

Maybe this was a bad idea.

Maybe it’s a bit too early in the day to make things even more awkward.

She’s about to turn on her heel and go hide back in the lab when the door is suddenly wrenched open and she’s almost bowled over by the woman in question, ‘Agent Danver’s, can I help you?’

Alex swallows. Here goes.

‘Can we talk?’

Lucy blinks once then walks back into her office, leaving the door open behind her.

Alex follows behind, and tries not to focus too much on how good Lucy can make a pair of standard issue cargo pants look.

They sit on opposite sides of her desk and Lucy is looking at her with such focus she almost forgets what she’s about to say.

What she starts with though, is:

‘I like you.’

Which—

 _That_ wasn’t what she had rehearsed.

And whatever Lucy was expecting her to say it clearly wasn’t that, judging by the sudden way her entire face changes.

Maybe that’s what prompts her to keep going, despite the voice at the back of her head telling her to quit whilst she still has her pride,

‘I like you, a lot actually. And maybe I’m wrong but I sort of got the impression you liked me that way too, and… I guess the thought of that _meaning_ something scared the hell out of me, so I pushed you away. Because that’s what I do, I guess,’ she shrugs, tiredly,

‘And I know me telling you all of this is… unprofessional but, I’m just— I’m sorry, can we maybe skip the awkward part and just go back to being… friends?’

By the time she’s finished, Lucy is watching her with the softest look, and before she can let her anxieties over her little speech pry their way back into her mind Lucy finally speaks.

‘I knew you’d miss me Danvers,’ say says, with a wolfish grin. Just like that the weight on Alex’s shoulders is lifted, ‘Thank you for apologising,’

Alex smiles, and god— shy is not a word she would ever use to describe herself, but standing in front of Lucy Lane she feels like the biggest dork on the planet. With luck, she’s saved by the Bell when a moment or two later a reminder on Lucy’s laptop jingles and Alex jumps at the opportunity to excuse herself.

‘By the way, Alex?’

She stops at the doorway at the sound of her name, and turns to look at Lucy, who’s eyes are down as she scribbles away at something on her desk,

You didn’t get the wrong impression,’

The way Lucy says it is so offhand, and cool. Alex almost doesn’t understand the insinuation.

Yet as Alex closes the door behind her with a click she can’t stop the smile spreading on her face, because hey.

Lucy Lane likes her, back.  


**Author's Note:**

> this has been sitting on my computer since season one ended and i really needed to get it finished, no matter how terrible. also I miss lucy lane.
> 
> also maybe I should have read through this before I posted it cos at some points there are definitely parts that were included in the original direction where this story was going but I suppose if you squint it makes sense.


End file.
